Umiak-l

In the midst of a tough winter season that created extra thick ice conditions throughout the Canadian Arctic Circle, I filmed with FedNav onboard Umiak; the largest bulk carrying ice breaker in the world.  It’s a 31,000-tonne behemoth that moves 360,000 tonnes of nickel concentrate a year from the Voisey Bay mine in northern Labrador.  Umiak has an ICE-15 class notation, one of the highest any vessel can have, meaning the hull is reinforced to break ice five feet thick.  It was an adventure on the high seas with this incredible crew from Newfoundland as we set sail on a three-week journey from Quebec City, Canada to the Voisey Bay nickel mine, load the cargo, then returning back to home port.  On the voyage back, with the ship loaded down full of nickel concentrate, we snapped back and forth, port to starboard, like an angry pendulum, while passing through days of bad weather and 30-foot swells; not good for the stomach of even the saltiest sailors.  In this image, while heading north towards Voisey Bay, we parked in the ice during a storm and waited overnight for weather to improve.

Tech Specs

Type: Bulk Carrier
Tonnage: 22,462 GT (gross tonnage)
Length: 619 ft
Beam: 87 ft
Draft: 38 ft
Depth: 52 ft
Ice Class: DNV ICE-15
Power: MAN B&W-Hitachi 7S70ME-C (21,770kW)
Propulsion: Single shaft; controllable-pitch propeller with nozzle
Speed: 13.5 kt & 3 kt with 5 ft ices